With former The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jen Shah being sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison, two victims of the reality star’s telemarketing ploy are breaking their silence.
During a Thursday morning broadcast of Good Morning America, ABC News correspondent Erielle Reshef spoke with some of the many victims of the scheme, which she says “ruined lives.”
The Victims Share Their Stories To Protect Others
One such person—a 75-year-old named Tricia—wound up losing half of her life savings.
Specifically, she coughed up $47,000 “on the false promise that Shah’s company would help her start an online business.” She also noted that Shah’s scheme also sounded “very legitimate” and pointed out, “I’m not a stupid person.”
“I’m telling the world: I was stupid enough to get caught in a scam. And I’m not a stupid person, but I did make a big mistake.”
Additionally, Tricia shared that, while she’d rather keep the situation to herself, she doesn’t want others “to have to go through that shame that [she] went through.”
Another victim named Molly McLaughlin, 44, shared her story, as well.
“I probably spent about $44,000 on six credit cards. All of [which] went into bankruptcy, because of course I couldn’t afford to pay that.”
The Scheme Left Victims In Financial Ruin: ‘I Don’t Have Money To Take Care Of Myself’
Ultimately—as the victims were largely made up of vulnerable populations, like the elderly—Jen Shah’s scheme did quite a bit of serious damage.
For Tricia, she says that she spiraled into a “deep depression.”
“I am just recovering from being in a deep depression…You get to a point where there is no way out.”
The 75-year-old added, “I don’t have the money to take care of myself [anymore].”
You can watch the GMA segment below.
Jen Shah Will Begin Serving Federal Prison Sentence Next Month
As The Shade Room previously reported, Jen Shah received a 78-month sentence on Jan. 6, 2023. This sentence came down nearly six months after Jen Shah pleaded guilty after continually proclaiming her innocence on RHOSLC.
the real housewives of salt lake city rhoslc jen shah I’m innocent! meme reaction video pic.twitter.com/J4kC4V9gzR
— reaction videos (@memepatissier) November 15, 2022
She is set to report to federal prison on Feb. 17. Additionally, Jen was ordered to pay $6M in restitution, which she vowed to do during her sentencing.
What do you think of the overall situation, and do you think The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City can survive without Jen Shah?
